Steering-wheel brake for vehicles



D. T. MCHENRY STEERING WHEEL BRAKE FOR VEHICLES,

Fil-9d Nov. 6, v1926 Sheets-Sheet 1 :d A v my NW .k E@

IN VEN TOR.

A TTORNE Y.

Feb. 12, 1929. 1,701,504

D. T. MGHENRY STEERING WHEEL BRAKE FOR VEHICLES Filed Nov. 6, 192e 2'sheets-snee: r2

I N VEN TOR.

A TTORNE Y.

mais ab. 12,1929. 1,101,504'A 'UNITED' STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DWIGHT fr. mummy, or worm, KANSAS.

STEERING-WHEEL BRAKEv FOB VEHICLES.

Application led Nfovember 6, 1926. Serial No.l.146,776;

My invention relates to steering wheel brakes to be applied to motordriven.

vehicles. V

The object of my invention is to provide 5a brake operating means thatwill function yon the two front and rear wheels of the vehiclesimultaneously.

Acfurther object of my .invention is to provide atbrake operating meansthat is lo? inexpensive and may be applied to any A'. standard make ofautomobile.

' A still further object of my invention is to provide'a .brakeoperating means that canl beapplied to\\the `front or steering wheels1.5and` operate -in conjunction with the present l brake on therearWheels of yan automobile.

- .'f- A-still'ffurther object of my invention isl Fig. 1 is anelevation showing vthe applica-v tion ofthe brake actuating means asapplied tol the front wheels o f an automobile, parts removed for'convenience' of illustration. 30,5. Fig., 2 is a vtransverse view of afragmentary part of the brake drum and shoe l :spewing the springtensioning means for the Fig. 3 is an end View of the brake mechalnismshowing the manner of attaching the vbracket'to the axle. l.

Fig. 4 is a plan ing the manner of attaching the brake shoe supportingdisc .to the spindle.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged elevation of the worm gears employed to rotate thebrake shoe expander, the housing being in section.

Fig. Gxisva transverse view ofFig. 5.

l Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the chassis of an automobile showingthe proposed ap-l plication of the .brake actuating rods and foot lever.

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the brake actuating means, artly in section forconvenience of illustratlon, and showing the extreme rock of thesteering wheel (by dotted lines) 'carrying with it the brake expandingmeme ber and4 its respective housing.

The mechanism herein disclosed pertains more particularly to a train ofworm gears trunnioned in a swivelled housing and means view of the'spindle show-y forV actuating the gears. The swivelled feature of thehousing isto accommodate for" the angle of the steering wheels relativeto the axle. The description will refer to one of the brake mechanismsas applied to one of the steering wheels of a vehicle; however 1t willbe understood that the same mechanism applies to both steering wheelsand may beapplied to the drive or rear wheels.

In Fig. 1- 1s shown a brake drum l atshown at 2. The drum is rigidlyattachedby. means of abolt 3, other means however may be employed. Thedrum may also be attached to they spokes of an ordinary wheel bystandard connecting means not shown in the drawings.

The brake shoe is rigidly supported independently by' means of a disc 3which is attached to the spindle by a strap 3 securely attached andlooping around .the apertured` portion of the. spindle through which thespindle bolt engages. On the peripheral edge of the disc" is a fiange Dtached to what is commercially known as a dlsc wheel, afragmentary partthereof being x adapted to engage over the open side of the drum asinclosing means therefor.

The brake actuating mechanism consists of a vertically positioned sleeve4 having a -worm gear 5 on both ends thereof and integral therewith, thesaid sleeve adapted to rotate freely on the spindle bolt 6 which extendsthrough the housing 7 in which is trunnioned transversely positionedgears 8 and 8, the said housing being in two parts having a ball bearingas at E functioning as a swivel. A shaft 9 isv rigidly attached to thegear 8, and on the opposite end thereof is an expanding member 10 forthe brake shoe. The shaft 11 to which gear 8 is rigidly attached istrunnioned at its opposite end by a'bracket 12, the said bracket beingattached angle bend thereof between the springs 14 and said axle andbound firmly by means of the clamps 15 which is the usual attachingmeans. Rigidly attached/to the upper end of the bracket is a sleeve 16through which the said shaft 11 engages axially, and rotatably carriedthereby. The said shaft is secured by a nut 17 threadedly engaging on'the outer end thereof, the said nut having ways as at A to engage with acotter pin as a locking means.

Revolvably mounted sleeve 18 having an arm 19 transversely and to theaxle 13 by placing the right l on the shaft 11 is a on the Shea 11 isrigidi. attached s Sleeve"I v21 by means of a pin 22 iametrically posif4tioned, the joint between the Vsaid sleeve and housin 7 being at lip 7',which laps over vthe .en of said sleeve as protecting means for thejoint. The end of saicl\sleeve is` toothed as at B and adapted to engageWith similar teeth on the end'of `the sleeve 18,

the v'said teeth being separated byy a coil spring 23 which is' seatedin the\adjacent ends of said sleeves. Asv a means `for' engaging theteeth, I have provided a cam on theY adjacent ends of sleeves 16 and .18as shown at C. It is now readily seenv that when the sleeve 18 isrotated by the foot brake mechanism the teeth will engage functioning asa clutchfrotating the shaft-` 11 transmitting the rotation of the expanding member 1() through the medium of the Worm gears 5, 8 and 8. When thebrake is released the teeth Will separate as shown in Fig. 1, the sleeve18 returning to its normal position as shown. n

By the disengagement of the teeth they steering Wheels are free. to turnto an angle relative to the axle Without interrupting the brake lever.While being positioned at an angle the brake may be applied actuatingthe expansion of the shoe With equal capacity as when the Wheels are instraight alignment with the chassis.

The turning of the Wheels Will'cause the gears 5 to revolve Which inturn revolve the shaft 11 WithoutA interrupting the brake levers asthesaid shaft is freeto turn in the sleeves 18 and 16. Being a plurality ofthe teeth the lost motion in applying the brake consists merely of thelength of the individual teeth when they are brought to engagement.

vAs a means to contract the brake shoe when the brake actuating means isreleased I have provided an annularspring 24, thel ends of which seat innotches 25 positioned .in the laterally extending ends 26 of the brakeshoe. l

Attention isv now directed to the action of the brakes. When the footlever is pushed forward. the rear brakes will take action a moment priorto the front brakes which is preferable, the action being due to the camactuated clutch on the front brake operating means. i

The mechanism herein disclosed may' be applied to the rear brakeseliminating the clutch feature, otherwise it Willremain the same and theprior action of the rear brake will be the same as When otherl styles ofbrake actuating means are employed.

` Worm within the scope of the'appended claims4 .Having thus describedmy invention, 'v vhatA I claim as new and desire to secure by Let#4 tersPatent 1s'2- 1. In a steering wheel brake-for a vehicle,

in a brake actuating meansofthe'kind de-v t scribed, a shaft having aclutch positioned thereon, a spring for separating' the jaws of theclutchsw en the 'rake is normally disengaged to allow one `member ot4the clutchfco. rotate when 'the Wheel is...being rocked on the spindlebolt, a cam Ato engpcgetheclutch when the brake is being' ex= e ised. ll

' I2. In a steering wheel brake for av ve` hicle, in a device of thekind described-in combination with' a Wheel and its axle, a brake drumrigidly attached to the wheel, a break shoe attached to 4the spindle, .a

etl

Sli

swivelled housing having a sleeve with a p t gear on each end thereofand integral therewith and rotatably mounted therein, the said sleeve inaxial alignment Withha'nd rotatably `mounted on the spindlev bolt, apair of worm lgears in mesh with first said gears, one" of last saidgears to operate the' brake shoe,'the other operated by the foot brakelever imparting movement to the brake slioegear through the medium ofthe sleeve gears, a dcam operated clutchl and means for operating' the.same to actuate the brake when the steering wheel is positioned at anang`| relative to the axle or chassis of the vehifle. v y y 3. Inasteering wheel brake for a vehicle, in combination withv the axle, thespindle and the wheel of a vehicle, a brake drum rigidly att-ached tothe; Wheel, a dise rigidly attached to the spindle, a brake shoe Withinthe drumand being carried by the disc, a train of worm gears to actnatethe brake shoe, saidgears trunnioned in a swivelled housing andivotallyyearried by the spindle bolt, a brac'- et attached to the axle,a shaft tr'unnioned in the bracket and the housing, the shaftconnecting' with one of the worm gears transmittin .power through` lthe' other gears, toothed seeve; rigidly attached to theshaft, the;teeth being on the end thereof,- a sleeve having a laterally' ex.-

tending arm toconn'ect with the brake rods,

a tootl'red sleeve having a laterally exit/end-4 ing arm and rotatablycarried on the sha-ft,

the teeth being onfuthc` adiacente end.: tol the first said toothedsleeve so that the toothed portion. of both ,will enga-ge functioningas' a clutch, a p spring V positioned between y.the toothed ends of thesleeves as Asepa-ratinig means for the teetlr,l a camV on the; oppositelever.v y L 4. In a steering wheel. brake 'for a vehicle, in combinationwith a brake drum and v mounted on the spindle and within said housing,an expanding member having a Worm gear trunnioned in one end of thehousing and in mesh With' one of the first said gears as actuating meansfor the brake shoe, a shafthaving a Worm gear trunnioned in the oppositeend of the housing and in mesh with the other of the first said gears, abracket having a sleeve Supporting the outer end of the last saidshaft,-

a. sleeve rotatably mounted on the shaft, a

'laterally extending arm integral with the 'sleeve to connect with thebrake rod, a foot lever and connecting rods to actuate the reciprocationof the arm, a cam 0n one end of .the sleeve, and a series of teeth onthe other end, a sleeve rigidly connected to the shaft having a. seriesof teeth on the end thereof adjacent to and adapted to engage with thefirst said teeth as actuating means for the shaft when the brake isapplied.

5. In a steering wheel brake for vehicles, in combination with'a brakedrum and a brake shoe, a sleeve having a Worm gear on each end thereof,the sleeve rotatable carried by the spindle bolt, a shaft having lanexpanding member on one end to engage the brake band and a Worm gear onthe opposite end in mesh with the upper Worin gear of the sleeve, ashaft having a Worm gear in mesh with the lower gear of the sleeve, anda bracket to rotatably engage the opposite end of the shaft, a jointedhousing for the upper sleeve gear and the gear in mesh therewith, and ahousing 4for the lower gear 'of the sleeve and its respective gear andshaft, the first said housing rockable engaging on the last said housingthrough the medium of the steering Wheel, a toothed member rigidlyattached to the last said shaft, and a member rockably engaging on theshaft, last said member having teeth on one end and a cam on the otherend and an arm intermediately positioned and laterally extending, thearm to pivotally engage with a brake rod, a member rigidly attached tosaid bracket and having a cam on the outer end thereof to engage withthe cam of the second said member, and a coil spring as separating meansfor the teeth on the first and second said members, the cam adapted tocause the teeth to engage when the arm is rocked, by which means thelast said shaft is turned, actuating the brake, all substantially asshown.

DWIGHT T. MOHENRY.

